Advance data in the notoriously opaque Chinese market show it kept pace in April. “The April selling rate was 26.3 million units/year, unchanged from a revised March figure. In YoY terms, sales (i.e., wholesales) expanded by 85% in April, as sales a year ago were abnormally weak due to the Shanghai lockdown. NEVs remained the key market driver, with their sales expanding by 113% YoY in April and 43% YTD.

“At the Shanghai Auto Show last month, over 80% of the new models on display were NEVs. Some provincial governments and dealers have extended tax incentives and discounts beyond their original end dates of March or April, as dealers still have many vehicles that are not compliant with the upcoming State VI-B emission standard. From 1st July, production, import and sales of vehicles that do not meet the new standard will be banned. As such, the price war is likely to continue and squeeze OEMs’ earnings, although massive price reductions and incentives have failed to boost sales significantly so far,” said LMC.